Championship games are all set

Four games apiece were played at both Veeder Park in Colonie and the Adirondack Sports Complex in Glens Falls yesterday. These games set up the final matchups for Class AA, A, B and D. In every class, there were some fantastic games and a couple fantastic finishes.

In Class AA, the Columbia Blue Devils rolled through to the finals with a very convincing 4-0 victory over Bethlehem. Pitcher Jena Servidone was fantastic, hitting her spots all day and utilizing her defense. Bethlehem couldn’t get anything going offensively, never putting a runner across the plate and rarely seeing a runner in scoring position.

As for Columbia, their offense did the work early. They didn’t score 12 in the first, as they did on Friday against Colonie, but they scored one in the first, when sophomore second baseman Brittany Hart plated senior captain Sam Chevalier with a RBI infield single to short. In the second, junior Meg Hallenback hit a RBI double, scoring Hillary Faas. One out later, back-to-back RBI singles by Chevalier and senior catcher Shannon Dougherty pushed the lead to 4-0. That proved to be much more than enough, as a fantastic Bethlehem offense was silenced for the third time by Servidone. Columbia went 2-1 in three games with Bethlehem, but held the Eagles to one run in 21 innings.

In the other semifinal, Niskayuna rode a three-run home run by pitcher Rachel Annello to defeat Saratoga 3-1. This continues the magical Niskayuna run, and their past two victories came via home run. Molly O’Donnell helped beat Shenendehowa with a grand slam, and Annello’s home run off of Saratoga pitcher Alyson Onyon was the difference yesterday. This is the first time since 1982 that Nisky will play in the sectional title game.

It should be an intriguing championship, Niskayuna is more of an offensive team, and Columbia’s usually all about shutting down the opponent. Both pitchers (Servidone and Annello) threw four-hitters in the semifinals, so the championship could very well be low-scoring. These two played one of the more memorable games in the Suburban Council this season on May 11, when Shannon Dougherty’s RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning won the game for Columbia, 8-7.

In Class A, Lansingburgh was forced to come back against a very competitive Ichabod Crane team to win 6-4. Lansingburgh was down 4-2 in the fourth inning, but Meg Volz sparked a comeback with a RBI triple. Erin Glikes shut down Ichabod Crane after that, not allowing another run. With the game 5-4, senior shortstop Alli Pullen hit a double for Ichabod with a runner on second. Lansingburgh had a fantastic relay to home plate, where Volz put the tag on and the runner was called out. A very controversial call, as it seemed like the girl had slid in before the ball got to Volz and the tag was very high. Had she been called safe, and the game tied at 5, who knows what would have happened. It doesn’t matter now, as Glikes will see her first sectional final in six years of varsity softball.

The other matchup became the game of the day, as South Glens Falls’ senior catcher Amanda Perry slugged a two run home run in the bottom of the eighth to walk-off with a 4-2 victory over Burnt Hills. The Spartans outhit the Bulldogs 10-8, but couldn’t come up with the clutch hit when they needed it. This matchup was the title game for Class A in each of the past two seasons, and South High won both of those matchups as well. South Glens Falls advances to yet another championship game, looking for their fifth straight sectional title. Deja vu for junior pitcher Emily Ostrom, who gave up a walk-off home run to South Glens falls in the ninth inning of the 2007 Class A final.

In Class B, Mechanicville continued their dream season with a 4-1 victory over Chatham. They used their trademark aggressive play, stealing home and pushing the envelope against a Chatham team not used to seeing this style of play. The lone run for Chatham was scored on a bomb hit by Chatham’s Chrissy Dunton off of Anna Arceneaux, one of the more impressive home runs of sectionals.

Schuylerville did not allow Taconic Hills’ offense to generate a thing in their 2-0 victory at the Adirondack Sports Complex. Senior pitcher Katie Gallagher pitched one of her best games, and the Black Horses managed two runs off of junior stud Aleshia Link. Schuylerville avenged a 2-1 loss to Taconic from the regular season. It will be an interesting championship game, Schuylerville might have the edge in pitching, but they will need to learn how to keep Mechanicville off of the bases, because Coach Don Arceneaux is one of the best when it comes to manufacturing runs.

Both Class D games had a flair for the dramatic, as Germantown defeated Argyle 3-2 and Hartford defeated Fort Ann by the same score. Both games went into ten innings, and were won by walk-off hits.

I will be attending the Class CC and C finals at Clifton Commons today. Top seeded Lake George will have to score some runs on freshman phenom Rachel Quackenbush in order to beat Hoosick Falls in the CC final. The top two seeds also advanced to the C final, as Duanesburg plays Waterford.